


The cursed white crow

by alumort



Category: Naruto
Genre: Curse Breaking, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Magic, Spells & Enchantments, Trans Male Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-01
Updated: 2020-07-01
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:01:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,090
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25008130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alumort/pseuds/alumort
Summary: In which Neji is a crow thanks to a curse his Clan placed on him, and Lee is the witch that manages to break it.
Relationships: Hyuuga Neji & Rock Lee, Inuzuka Kiba & Rock Lee
Comments: 5
Kudos: 13





	The cursed white crow

**Author's Note:**

> neji week prompt: freedom  
> fantasy week prompt: witches and familiars
> 
> rating is teen and up audiences because of an implied sexual offer and nudity in the end.

The sky was immense. He got lost between the clouds, his white wings camouflaging with them. It was a strange migration, unwanted, and he was flying alone. The travel was going to be permanent, though. There was nowhere to return. Because, if he did... If he did. His Clan was powerful with the help of magic. With the help of  _ curses _ .

If he returned, all his feathers would be taken away. He was slowly losing his humanity, he- he couldn't lose his wings. Precious extensions of him, they carried him in the wind... they were the only pieces of freedom he had. His family thought the curse would make him feel pain, melancholy about a missing self, but he had never felt happier in his whole life.

Neji had been forced to be distant, always looking at the ground and act like he wasn't a real man. Now that he became a crow, that he was  _ 'cursed' _ , he could be himself. Roam the skies in peace, not thinking in anything else than in the fact he was grateful he didn't marry the person he was destined to. That he listened to Naruto and refused, no matter the outcome.

The air was refreshing. He had forgot for how long he had been flying- for days? Could a crow fly for days at once, or time passed slowly as a bird? He didn't remember when he last saw the darkness of the night, or when was the last time he ate something.

He had been in the sky for so  _ long _ , playing with the clouds, his angelic wings forgot the path back to the ground. To the place he would never return to.

... Thinking of this made him get actually hungry. If it had not been for that, the white crow would've stayed far from the land for more time. Hours, days; those didn't matter anymore.

He went to the ground, diving as if he was swimming in the sea, not losing any of his feathers with the strong breezes.

A huge forest was under him, and Neji would have smiled if he didn't had a beak. He could find food there, and maybe he could make a nest there, get a mate...

The bird denied with his head. His humanity was really fading away, and he feared he would lose the ability to think clearly over time. He didn't even remember for how long he flew for, his muscles didn't feel sore... what was happening? Was this the  _ real _ reason behind his new shape?

Neji would lose his consciousness, control of himself. What was the point of freedom if he wasn't going to be able to enjoy it? Even if that was his destiny… Neji wanted to enjoy it for as long as he could.

He flew low, near the base of the trees. He didn't know what crows eat... worms,  _ disgusting _ . Fruits? Vegetables?

"It's peaceful here, you'll be safe in these woods!"

Hair? No, that's- wait, why did he thought of  _ hair _ ? Who was the one talking near where he searched for food?

"Are you  _ sure _ no hunters come by?", another voice wondered, but it was deeper. As if talking was hard for its owner.

Neji hopped, following the chatter. Flying again would make noise, specially since there were so many branches where he was resting... plus, he could observe better from the ground.

"There are no hunters indeed, Kiba. It's almost as if they didn't knew there's a forest behind the mountains! Isn't that great?"

From where he was, he could see a massive dog laying in the ground with its eyes closed, and someone with green clothes. Neji couldn't see more so, step by step, he got closer to the discussing people.

"I'll trust you then, Rock", the deeper voice exclaimed, sighing after talking. "You're the witch of these lands, after all.  _ You _ would know if hunters were here."

"Mhm!",  _ 'Rock' _ agreed, nodding. The white crow stared at the man, dodging the sleeping dog as well as he could with his short legs. "I had to use a transformation spell to cross the mountains... maybe that's the reason they never crossed? Because it's too high?"

"Maybe. Akamaru and I were lucky that  _ damned _ dragon was too weak. I don't know where we would be if-"

"Transformation spell?"

The conversation ended with the question of the newcomer, the gazes of the men concentrated in the bird at their feet. Nobody moved or talked for a while, analysing in silence what had just happened.

"Oh", Neji chirped softly, closing his eyes. "I thought I couldn't talk anymore. Hello."

The person with the green clothes crouched, extending a hand towards the crow. He hummed a short, repetitive tune, and Neji could feel his body relaxing before being carefully carried by that man. He opened his pale eyes again, analysing the strange haircut and his proportions... he was between a stranger's hands and still, for some reason, he felt safe.

"Who are you, little one?",  _ 'Rock' _ asked him, a small smile in his lips. "How can you talk?"

"My name is Neji", Neji answered before even realizing, blinking. "I was a human before. My family turned me into a bird, because I refused to act as someone I wasn't."

"That's sad... Can we eat him?", the other man wondered, approaching the duo. "I never ate a white crow. I heard they're naturally salty!"

"Kiba!! We won't eat him! That's _cannibalism!",_ _'Rock'_ muttered, holding the bird closer to his chest. Neji still felt safe, but... it felt strange at the same time. "He's a _human!"_

"But Leee, he looks like a bird! Have you ever eaten something that's not cabbage?!", Kiba argued, crossing his arms. He frowned, looking at Neji with intensity, licking his lips. "Birds are the best!"

"I am a human, I just  _ look _ like a bird now", Neji explained, looking back at Kiba. The man got uncomfortable under his pale gaze. "I was wondering if..."

"Oh, yes! I can turn you back into a human!", Lee agreed, grinning. "I have to investigate what spell was used to turn you into a crow, but it won't take longer than a month or two! With luck..."

"That's okay. I don't have anywhere to be, so time is not a preoccupation for me."

The dog waked up just to bark happily at the last statement, waving its tail.

~

If Lee hadn't guided him there, Neji would have flown over his home. It was hidden between the trees; probably done using magic on them, based in the way they twisted and curled over the stone pieces used to give it a shape. The forest was a dense, dangerous place if you aren't in company of someone from there. Kiba said he had to hunt and so, they were alone.

The crow had to sit in the table- not in a chair. Literally on the center of the makeshift wooden table, while the witch carefully observed his feathers, a careful hand approaching him. Neji made an annoyed caw in response.

"What are you trying to do?", he asked to the man, doing what could be considered a frown. "Stop it."

"I'm just investigating what can be done, Neji", Lee exclaimed, giving the bird his space. "I don't know how the curse was activated, or why you turned into a crow. Most curses just cause death, you know?"

Neji stared at the witch, exhaling deeply. He hoped to his hand, looking at the ground; there was a reason the curse didn't kill him, but he didn't thought it needed to be shared. A green seal on his forehead, under his feathers, that had been there for as long as he could remember.

Lee saw it when the crow showed his skin with his other leg, doing a weird maneuver to do so. An X, with a separated line at each side, was what made him susceptible to his Clan's magic, more than the Main Branch members where. They were unaffected by the Hyuga-only spells, but Side Branch members were not.

"This... is the Caged Bird Seal. Guess what happens if activated", Neji chirped, leaving the uncomfortable position as his muscles had started to ache. "Apart of destroying neurons, of course."

"I, uh, already see it... Who put that on you? What did you do?"

"... Not being born as my Clan's heir.  _ That _ was my mistake", the bird replied, looking to one of the few windows of the house.

"I... I mean", Lee mumbled, pausing to pick the correct words to keep talking. He didn't want to upset his small companion. "What did you do to be transformed into a crow?"

"I didn't want to get married. I didn't want to, to... be a woman. And they punished me with an arranged marriage", Neji admitted, closing his eyes. He suspected Lee had put a soothing spell of sorts before, because he would  _ never _ say all of this to a stranger. At the same time, he felt like they had met before, for a reason beyond his comprehension. "When I tried to escape my destiny, I was punished.  _ Twice _ ."

The witch looked at him, nothing coming from his mouth. His lips trembled; he wasn't good at comforting with words, and he couldn't hug the bird knowing he would peck him if he touched one of his precious feathers. So he extended a finger and, slowly, touched his beak. Neji seemed surprised by this, but didn't comment on it, distracted by the door opened by Kiba as he returned from hunting.

"Hey-", the newcomer exclaimed, interrupting himself as Lee spoke again, looking at the witch in silence.

"You have gone through a lot, Neji. I understand why having your own wings is important. I'll try to be quick with the spell, but we need a lot of things...", Lee muttered, scratching his head. Akamaru helped him in get up as he talked. "The seal has your own hatred towards it. To your family, and what they did. It's stronger than what I expected. Neji, I will need to take some of your feathers, or-"

"You. Will. Not-"

"I have to, even if it sucks. That's how transformation spells work- with a part of whoever needs to be transformed. I normally use my hair, because saliva isn't strong enough..."

"In that case... I will be the one taking them", Neji agreed, closing his eyes before starting to peck his chest, careful enough to not harm himself. Lee sighed, and Kiba twisted his head slightly to the right in curiosity.

"Then... Kiba, your fangs are sharper than my knives. Could you give me one?"

"Wow, I need them to change by themselves or they don't grow again", Kiba argued, scratching his short beard and showing an empty space on his mouth. "I'll change my fangs again in... three months, or so."

"Okay!", Lee exclaimed, looking at Neji. "You heard him, you'll be a human again in three months! The spell is easy, based on how the seal reacted when I tried to remove it with magic."

~

The seasons didn't seem to change in that dense forest between the mountains. The trees were always green, leaves didn't fall even if it was March... Neji thought that was odd as he explored the woods once more, enjoying dodging the branches as if they were obstacles of a race. A race against the tiredness of his wings, of his breath; he was the only participant of that circuit, sometimes followed by a barking Akamaru, who seemed to just want to have fun.

If he counted well... the next day, Kiba would change his fangs. He would become a human again, have feet, hair, and-

In all honesty, he never cared about his body. If he wasn't handsome, nobody would want to force him to be married... or so he thought. A foolish mindset from the past, something that was so wrong he became like this in the end. Reduced to a bunch of feathers and a beak but, hey, at least he could fly around. Lee told him to be more positive, and that counted...  _ right _ ?

He hoped so. Becoming a human again after so long was a thing that made him a bit afraid, excited; he would have legs and hands again. Would be able to read books comfortably, and... well, those were the only perks. Maybe he could be transformed into a crow sometimes, but not for long times, just to fly around once again.

Neji didn't know when he fell asleep, but Lee woke him up with hushed whispers. Kiba was gone, but his companion- who he felt confident enough to call a friend now, with his never-ending support and bright smiles-, was carrying a small dagger. Or that's what it looked like.

"Kiba and Akamaru are collecting plants for me. The lavender had fungi and I noticed too late, so they offered to go", the witch explained with a little smile. "We already have all we need. Do you want to have breakfast before I use the spell?"

"No, I... I'll be fine", Neji replied, flying to sit on a chair as Lee grabbed stuff from a cabinet. "What do I have to do now?"

"Stay still", his friend said, with white feathers and mushrooms on his hands. "With parts of hallucination mushrooms and parts of your feathers, you'll be a human again. The mushroom will fool the seal into going away, I think..."

"Hallucination mushrooms. Right."

"Well, that's how I do shapeshifting spells. My mentor taught me that way", Lee exclaimed, scratching his hair. He started to cut the materials in small pieces, letting them in a plate. Then he covered the dagger- it was actually a sharp fang, if Kiba did sacrifice one of his own- on the mix.

Neji hopped closer to him, looking down. He let the witch move the feathers in his forehead, showing the seal to him. The crow closed his eyes as he felt the sharp blade make contact with his skin, right on the center of the green mark.

" **Que esta ave deje de ser ave, y vuelva a su forma original...** ", Lee mumbled in an unknown language, repeating the words as he put the fang a bit deeper on his forehead, still careful to not destroy anything. " **¡Y que su maldición, desaparezca!** "

Neji wasn't expecting anything to happen, until a lavender glow was covering him, every of his feather on end. He levitated in the air, without being able to move; had the spell succeeded? Had it failed? Maybe he had to be less untrustful for the next time, because this was weird and felt like real magic.

"Neji, how do you feel?", the witch asked, getting close to the glow, leaving the dagger on the table. It was starting to look like a sphere.

"Fine", the crow answered. His voice sounded like he was underwater, with the magic covering all of his body now.

The shape of the strange shine changed; from a sphere, to the silhouette of a bird, to slowly turning into the silhouette of a person. Neji gasped, not making any other sound for the rest of the process. It stopped as soon as it started, and then nothing moved. The aura was slowly shattering, becoming dust; Lee approached his friend, standing in front of where his face should be.

"Neji!"

He was completely covered by the glow. Then, all of the thing dissipated in the air, and-

He was amazed by his long, long dark brown hair. A thin face, with thin lips and beautiful pale lavender eyes... muscled arms, that hugged him as soon as Neji realized he could use them again.

_ 'Oh no', _ Lee thought, unable to look away from his face. He felt his cheeks heating up, the sweat in his palms becoming too intense to ignore as someone does naturally. ' _... he's hot! _ '

"Thank you, Lee", the crow-  _ no, he wasn't a crow anymore-  _ his friend, exclaimed, closing his eyes. "I am totally free now. And I couldn't be without you."

Lee couldn't find words to say, about anything. He felt like he was a piece of butter about to melt, in the embrace of the other man. It was worse  _ (better?) _ when he started to stroke his hair, softly brushing it with the tips of his fingers.

"I feel so weird. Hands are weird. My wings didn't sense whether something was soft or not...", his friend muttered, looking at his eyes. "You are red."

"I, um, a-ah...". Lee couldn't pronounce any word now, too embarrassed to say anything. Then he heard Neji laughing, still not letting him go; with a smile in his lips, his own cheeks having a soft blush too.

"I don't know how I will pay you", the slightly shorter man said, caressing his chin. Lee could feel his lips trembling. "I would go back to bring something, but. You know."

"You can stay here!", the black haired man exclaimed, a little too loud and excited. The surprised stare he got from his companion made him gulp. "I, um, you have been here for months... It's not different if you're a bird or a human now, it's still  _ you _ ! And your presence is more than welcome here!!"

Another giggle, like a melody from the sky. And Neji hugged him again, trying to be steady in his feet now.

"Okay then. Maybe I can reward you in... another way, later", the brunet added, winking. It was then that the witch noticed that the green seal had disappeared, leaving a small scar on its place. "... I just noticed I'm naked."

"Maybe my clothes will fit you, I can make you better ones later", Lee suggested, guiding his friend to the bed. His steps were shaky, but it was something expected; birds didn't use their legs much. He did his best to not look under his friend's shoulders, simply grabbing a loose green shirt and brown pants from his closet. 

"Thank you", Neji whispered when Lee gave him the clothes, staring at them with confusion, just to put them on at the next moment. "For...  _ everything _ ."

"You're welcome, my friend!", the taller man replied, smiling. He was sitting at his side, looking to the wall until his friend hugged him from behind.

They stayed like that for a while, quietly enjoying the company of the other. It felt different than usual, and not because Neji wasn't a bird anymore. He felt more relaxed and happy, somehow. And it made Lee happy too.

**Author's Note:**

> there's a mini secret there, it's more obvious with two dialogues but. idk. i want to see if i wrote it well.  
> try to unravel it owo
> 
> edit: guys!! there's fanart of this :") aa  
> [ here!! ](https://tamegochi.tumblr.com/post/638173784171560960/i-had-already-planned-to-make-a-fanart-of-this)
> 
> thank you so much tamegochi🥺


End file.
